Death Valley rally November 4-11 2018

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I got a very informative multi page email from the 49ers about what is happening at the Encampment. It is too big too post, so if people send me their email address using the little envelope icon I will forward the message. It might take a day or so since I have extremely limited internet, but I will get it out.
 
My plan is to leave on Saturday, stopping for one night in Ft Stockton, Deming, Mesa, then in Pahrump. I would like to stop there for a couple of days to do laundry and fill and dump tanks etc. There is an escapees park there, but they dont take reservations. Anyone know what the chances are of them having a spot there or are they pretty full up? I should be there on the 30th.
 
Unfortunately Caryl, many other people going to the Encampment have the same idea.  I have a space in the Escapees park and in the past few days we have had to put several people in the boondocking area next to the park entrance, this hasn't happened since last spring.  Other RV parks in town are the same way, when I went shopping this afternoon I noticed Saddle West Casino's RV park along Hwy 160 has also filled up and the number of RVs on the road has definitely increased.

On the good side, the October weather has been great - daytime highs in the low 80s and overnight lows in the 50s.

I suggest consulting RVParkreview.com and see what's available before you get here.  For what it's worth, gas and diesel prices in Pahrump are about 20-30 cents cheaper than in Las Vegas and about half what you would have to pay in Death Valley.

Also check with the Nevada DOT website https://www.nevadadot.com/Home/Components/News/News/3940/395?fsiteid=1 or call 511 for the latest highway information.  They're blasting the canyon on hwy 160 over the summit between Pahrump and Las Vegas to widen the road so it's being closed for a couple of hours mid-day every other day or two.

 
Thanks Lou. I will check into the blasting schedule and the park review site. Im not opposed to boondocking in Pahrump, I just need a place to empty tanks and fill water and fuel up before heading to the rally.
 
Definitely fuel up in Pahrump, but Sunset campground does have water and a dump available if you run out of options. Get your grocery basics in Pahrump too. The DV store isn?t very big though it does have things like some produce and milk. After Lou?s comment, we made a reservation at Wine Ridge RV Resort for one night. Expensive, but staying in DV will be cheap enough to make up for it.
 
I got a spot there for two nights, The 30th and 31st. Will head to the Valley on the 1st. If youre there those nights, maybe we can do a mini pre-rally and have dinner out somewhere or something
 
The next scheduled closure of Hwy 160 between Las Vegas and Pahrump is Wednesday October 31 from 12:45 to 3 PM.
 
The next scheduled closure of Hwy 160 between Las Vegas and Pahrump is Wednesday October 31 from 12:45 to 3 PM.

Thanks for this info Lou. I got to Pahrump today. I was going to go into Las Vegas tomorrow, but decided to skip it. Driving in this wind wore me out. I'll just wander around Pahrump tomorrow and see the sights.
 
cadee2c said:
Driving in this wind wore me out.
The wind yesterday was really bad! There is quite a bit of,haze in the valley from left over smoke, but yesterday the dust blew so much as to almost hide the mountains to northwest. I had planned to visit Father Crowley point hoping to see the fighter planes, but I doubt they are training in this wind.
 
UTTransplant said:
The wind yesterday was really bad! There is quite a bit of,haze in the valley from left over smoke, but yesterday the dust blew so much as to almost hide the mountains to northwest. I had planned to visit Father Crowley point hoping to see the fighter planes, but I doubt they are training in this wind.
We spoke to an avid watcher when we were there who said Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday's are the best days and  between 8am to 1pm best times. He had seen 12. We got there after 2 and saw none!
 
Utclmjmpr said:
Jackie,  either your a day late or a change in plans,, the federallies will be looking for you.>>>Dan
Bad timing. We had booked our return flights or we could have met up with everyone. Maybe next year...
 
jackiemac said:
We spoke to an avid watcher when we were there who said Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday's are the best days and  between 8am to 1pm best times. He had seen 12. We got there after 2 and saw none!
I have heard the same. I figure if I leave the campground about 8:00 and bring my lunch I might get lucky! I did hear jets in the distance today at the campground, but didn?t see them.
 
After 4 years on the flight line in the Air Force and 33 years in general aviation repair, I don't need to see anymore jets.>>>Dan
 
We will have our first official meeting at 4:00 pm at campsite H1. Bring your favorite beverage, a chair, and a snack if you want. We will talk about schedule options and do some planning. So far I know there are four of us, but I think a few more will wonder in during the week. Internet service is abysmal here (a private network) so I can?t post the picture I have so far. Eventually we will find some wifi and get them up. We have had some nice sightseeing, and we saw fighters at Rainbow canyon!
 
Having been planning on being there, we had a late change of plans and won't make it this year. WE did however check out Long Street Casino/RV Park. While there is not much to it, it certainly would be an option for some depending on ones needs. I can imagine us staying there when we do make it to the 49er event.  I hope the wind dies down for ya all and you all have a Great time....hopefully next year, I can plan a little better and finally check this off the bucket list.
 
I finally got to Stovepipe Wells and decent Verizon data coverage so I can post. We have a small group - Dan and Marge West, Caryl, and Mark and Vickie Shorter. As usual, the campground was viritually empty when we arrived a week ago, but even the overflow lots are open now. Lots and lots of 49ers plus the regular tourists. Also as usual, it is the gorgeous scenery that attracts me year after year.

Picture 1 is at sunset from our campsite, no filter or post processing. Yup, the sunsets are really that gorgeous.
Pictures 2 - 4 show there are lots of colors in Death Valley beyond shades of brown.
Pictures 5 - 6 are from the Cherry Gordon mining town just outside the park above the Owns Valley. We got a private tour of the privately owned town. There are a number of partially restored buildings including a hotel and an incredible indoor hoist house with the man elevator showing. Pretty cool.

Tomorrow we will drive Titus Canyon with the Shorters, a lovely high clearance road with more ghost towns. Dan and Marge said they were leaving today so they drove it yesterday. Maybe he will post some pictures too. 
 

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I forgot these pictures! We drove the Westside Road yesterday, a sand and gravel road west of the main part of Badwater Basin. The wagon train that travels from near Ridgecrest every year as also driving the road, heading toward their parade entrance on Friday. Small horses, big horses, mules, and miniature horses were in abundance. There were eleven wagons and a number of horseback riders, but I only took pictures of the wagons, especially the ones with the miniature horses.
 

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